Late Home Run Lifts NC State Over No. 5 Miami, 11-10
March 16, 2008
RALEIGH, N.C. -. NC State’s Matt Payne hit a three-run home run to right center with one out and the Wolfpack rallied to defeat No. 5 Miami, 11-10, Sunday afternoon at Doak Field in a game shortened to eight innings due to the Sunday travel curfew. The Hurricanes (13-2, 5-1 ACC) won the series two games to one.
Predetermined before the start of the game, no inning could start after 4:45 p.m. to allow the Hurricanes to catch their returning flight back to Miami. Pond’s home run was hit a few minutes before the game was called with one out.
Junior centerfielder Blake Tekotte drove in three runs for Miami and finished 2-for-4. Jemile Weeks, Adan Severino and Mark Sobolewski each collected two hits. Sobolewski also scored three times.
Payne led the Wolfpack going 3-for-5 with three runs scored and the three-run homer. Dallas Poulk and Drew Martin also each had three hits while catcher Chris Schaeffer finished 1-for-2 with four RBI.
Sophomore closer Jimmy Gillheeney picked up the win as he tossed 2 2/3 innings in relief, allowed a hit and run and struck out two. Junior Carlos Gutierrez (0-1) suffered the loss as he gave up four runs on four hits, walked two and struck out two in 1 1/3 innings.
Fighting the curfew, the Hurricanes took a 10-8 lead in the top of the eighth, when Weeks launched the first pitch of the top of the eighth from Gillheeney to straight-away center off the scoreboard for his fourth homer of the season giving the Canes a 10-8 lead.
After Gutierrez recored the first out of the eighth, NC State put runners in scoring position with a walk and a base-hit. On an 0-1 count, Payne homered over the wall in right center giving the Wolfpack the 11-10 lead.
Dennis Raben’s first hit of the season was a towering shot that hit off the top of the scoreboard in left center for a solo home run to put the Hurricanes ahead, 8-7, in the fifth. Sobolewski followed with a double to right center and scored on a fielding error giving Miami a 9-7 lead.
NC State tied the game in the bottom of the fourth, 7-7, on Ryan Pond’s RBI groundout.
Miami trailed 6-3 heading into the fourth. Tekotte laced a two-run single down the right field line that scored Sobolewski and Ryan Jackson making it, 6-5. Yonder Alonso’s RBI single down the left field line tied the game, 6-6. Joey Terdoslavich’s sacrifice fly gave Miami a 7-6 lead.
Chris Schaeffer’s three-run homer over the scoreboard in center field highlighted a four-run second gving the Wolfpack a 4-2 lead and chasing UM starter Enrique Garcia, who allowed four runs on six hits in 1 1/3 innings.
Severino’s RBI single in the first scored Weeks as Miami led 1-0 off the bat. The Hurricanes made it 2-0 in the top of the second on an RBI triple from Tekotte.
Miami begins a seven-game homestand when the Hurricanes host Cornell at 7 p.m. Tuesday.
Series Notes
Junior second baseman Jemile Weeks led Miami in the NC State series going 6-for-13 with five runs scored and five RBI. He had a double, a triple and home run in the series.The Hurricanes hit .314 in the series against the Wolfpack and was 10-of-11 in stolen bases.Miami produced 11 two-out RBIs and hit .351 (13-for-37) with two outs.Sophomore right-hander Kyle Bellamy pitched 4 1/3 innings and struck out five.At 13-2, the Hurricanes are off to their best under UM head coach Jim Morris since 1995 when that team also went 13-2 in their first 15 games.
